Stoke. where they get it from......

[ned_werby]

Stoke City's manager Tony Pulis frequently plays the underdog card. But as his team stand just one place off a Champions League berth and have put Tottenham Hotspur out of the Carling Cup, it is time to debunk the myth.

In the 2009-10 season, the most recent for which accounts are available, Stoke's turnover was £58.98m, the Premier League's 14th highest. Yet Stoke are afforded many luxuries unavailable to their peers, thanks to being a subsidiary of an organisation with a turnover of £5.4bn a year.

Stoke belong to bet365, and in the 2009-10 season were given a parent-company subsidy of £15.42m, serving as bet365's tax write-off – the company has been applauded, however, for keeping its entire betting operation in the UK, whereas most of its competitors' online and telephone-betting departments are offshore to avoid all tax.

It means Pulis was able to invest £20.58m, net, in new players in 2009-10 as the Potters spent £12.2m more than they earned that season, making their total subsidised expenditure £71.2m. Indeed, Stoke's parent-company structure gives them another great advantage: access to interest-free finance. That season Stoke's bank debt was a negligible £175,000, costing them £6,000 in interest fees. Everton, by contrast, must foot an annual interest bill of close to £4.5m – equivalent to two players earning £43,000 a week.

The available figures are dated, but there are no signs that bet365's investment has abated. Over the year to May 2010 Stoke's wage bill was a relatively modest £45m. But, in addition to another round of net transfer investment exceeding £20m last summer (and a few millions more in the previous one), salary costs have been swelled by the arrivals of well-paid players such as the England internationals Peter Crouch, Matthew Upson and Jonathan Woodgate.

Dogged, Stoke City most certainly are, but underdogs? Not any more.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...aborn-ferguson

[Aberdeen Angus]

Martin Samuel was on Sunday supplement the other week talking about Stoke were the main threat to Arsenals champions league status which had me baffled. To my knowledge they signed two Spurs cast offs in Crouch and Palacios and Matt Upson who was garbage for West Ham last season. Now don't get me wrong I think Stoke will finish top 11 but no side with Jon Walters, Dean Whitehead and Rory Delap will finish top4

[BRMC]

With the right man they could go places.

[Lanchesterredandwhite]

Originally Posted by ned_werby

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...aborn-ferguson

2009-10?

You mean the season we sold them Kenwyne Jones at a loss, and helped poor little Stoke out with wages for him as the only way the deal could stack up?

Still at least it hasnt left us short up front. Oh hold on ...

[Pepe]

Originally Posted by Aberdeen Angus

Martin Samuel was on Sunday supplement the other week talking about Stoke were the main threat to Arsenals champions league status which had me baffled. To my knowledge they signed two Spurs cast offs in Crouch and Palacios and Matt Upson who was garbage for West Ham last season. Now don't get me wrong I think Stoke will finish top 11 but no side with Jon Walters, Dean Whitehead and Rory Delap will finish top4

Sports writer of the year him man, must know his stuff.

Stoke are in for harder season than people expect, for me.

[Lord Alfred]

Peter Coates, Stokes's owner is well behind Ellis Short in the football rich list and most of his wealth is tied up in the shares of his company Bet365. If they are challengers for a CL place () then we should be running Man U close for the title.